Metronome #021: option4

Feb 24, 2015Troy Kurtz

If you ever catch an option4 DJ set, chances are you’ll see a room full of smiling people. His sound, much like his attitude, is soaked in positivity and good vibes. He’s no new kid on the block, and his history and prowess in dance music shine through at all times.

He’s been instrumental in developing Denver’s scene, and over the course of the last year, his tracks have been gaining global recognition. For this edition of the Metronome series, class is in session with option4 as he delivers a jacking history of house music.

House

You’re practically the undisputed king of Denver. How did that come to be?
[Laughs] Oh man, I don’t know if I’m the king of anything. There’s been a very long and rich history of house music in Denver. When I moved here, however, it was pretty hit or miss as far as the talent that was coming here. At the time, house music was in a sort of recession in the US in general. We just got very fortunate and grouped a small community here in Denver to start bringing [house music] out on a regular, consistent basis while everyone else was bringing EDM types of acts. Our first year of throwing parties, we debuted everyone from MK to Todd Edwards to Paul Johnson to Disclosure. The amount and size of the parties kind of grew from there naturally, and the rest is history. However, that first year gave us an amazing opportunity to bring a lot of special underground (at the time) shows. I opened up for every one of them. I’ll always look back on that time with a sincere fondness.

The last time we were hanging out, you played me some crazy tracks. Any update on those?
The records are all finished. I’m so excited to start shopping them. [Laughs] That’s the scary part. It’s like you put so much effort into these records, and then you finally put them on display for people that you hope will sign them. It’s like going up to a girl you’re hella attracted to and then asking her out. There are always those butterflies. I can’t wait until they’re signed and they get out there—unless no one signs them and everyone hates them. Then this conversation never happened.

You’ve got a really interesting sound. What are your major influences?
I write music based upon how I feel for the day. It’s weird. I’ll write 50 records to make one good one, and the one I choose usually ends up being one that I write while I’m in a good mood. Musically speaking? I would be lying if I said there isn’t a time where I need inspiration and I don’t turn to listening to old Todd Edwards records. Even if I’m making something completely different, I draw a lot (and I mean A LOT) of inspiration from him, as a person and obviously as an artist. I also stay pretty current with as much music as I can consume at any given point, so sometimes I’m influenced by stuff I don’t even recognize is influencing a record until after the fact. For example, today I’m hella inspired by waffles.

Tell us a bit about this mix.
Let’s be honest: Most mixtapes are pretty lazy. I’m guilty of that, too. I noticed it the other day when I went through my SoundCloud. A lot of times it’s just a rush to make a deadline type of thing, and not too much care goes into them. With that being said, for this one I wanted to do something completely different. I wanted to put together a mix of all kinds of old, classic house music. There’s a lot of stuff that gets me going that is probably older than the kids that will stumble across it. It’s a rare opportunity to make a mixtape for such a huge outlet like Insomniac, so I wanted to come correct. Some of these tunes are 20 years old, but they still got jack. I hope you enjoy it!

What’s next in the world of option4?
Now that I have all these originals done and they’re ready to shop, I’m working on a collaboration with K.Flay and my friends Antony & Cleopatra. It should be pretty fun to stretch my musical muscle a little bit while trying different types of genres as a producer. I’m always looking forward to more touring as well this year. Last year, I played so many awesome cities that I can’t wait to [revisit]. I’m also hoping this is the year where I can turn pro at bowling. I broke 100 like four times last week.